Method of hydrating cellulose fibers



ls'knive's of-the fixed bedplate. place under these Patented Apr, 13;1926.

' u r-Eo STATES PATENT P QFFIV'CEL sensors A. m: cn'w, or room! VERNON,

NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO PROCESS ENGI- NEEBS Inc, on NEW ro'nx, N. Y. v

HETHOl) OI HYDRATING CELLULOSE FIBERS.

No Drawing.

To all whom it ma. concern:

Be it known tha Jonson A. DE (law, a citizen of the United States,residing at Mount Vernon, in the county of Westchester.

prepared by treating them between the knives of the revolving roll andthe The action which takes conditions may be a cuttlng action whlchshortens the fibers or it ma be a different action, depending on'the metd 0150 erationrwhich results in the wetting of the ers, by

',.the squeezing and beating action the receive between the revolvingroll and the edplate. For some classes of papers, it is desirable to wetthe fibers very thoroughly so thatthey are softened and swollen andbecome very pliable and this action is generally called hydration.

The common practice in treating these.

fibers in the beating engine .is to carry on the coloring and sizingreactions that are'to be produced at the same time as the hydration ofthe fibers takesplace, the size and alum being used for sizing beingadded before the beater is discharged.

This means that much of the hydration of the heater is carried on whilethe stock is in an acid condition, for the sizing of paper alwaysrequires anexcess of sulphate of alumina which .has an acid reaction.

For some classes of papers a large percent oi the-hydration is producedin the beating engine while for other kinds of paper, such as kraftpaper or rag and sulrevolving knives beating against fixed :l

knives and this ;machine being standard uipment in nearly every aper .1nill, is rl ways operated on stock w ich has been previously made acidwith sulphate of alumina,'while in the beating engine.

The Jordan engine is a machine which re- Application fled June 7,

phite papers, a large part and. sometimes all 1924. Serial No. 718,656.

quires a large amount of powerto operate, requiring from 150 to 400horsepower for each machine, depending upon the character of the paperpulp being treated. i

In the manufacture of kraft which is a common variety of wrapping paper,the Jordan engine is relied upon by many mills to produce nearly all ofthe hydration that,

takes place,

Any process elfecting the efliciency of this piece of equipment has animportant bearing upon the quality of the finished product.

I have discovered after makin both laboratory and mill tests that adlfiere'nt kind of hydration takes place "in fibers that are beatenwhile in an alkaline'or neutral condition than those that are beinghydrated while in an acid condition in the. presence of sulphate ofalumina.

I have discovered that the hydration is most rapid while the stock is inan alkaline condition and that the hydration is the slowest when ittakes place in the presence of a solution of sulphate of alumina whichmakes v the fibers astringent, still and prevents them from absorbingthe water of h dration and also makes the fibers more easi y cut by theknives of the beating engine or the J ordan;

\ In order to produce rapid hydration with the minimum of power and inorder, to

produce the best quality of paper, I beat the stock while in a neutralor alkaline condition and dischar c it from the beating engine withoutadding sulphate of alumina to produce an acid condition.

The fibers are then treated in the Jordan while still in a neutral oralkaline condition where it undergoes further degrees of hydration andrefinement and after this action I is completed and the stock is readyfor the paper machine, it 'is then mixed with sulphate of alumina toproduce the acid con dition necessary for sizing, after which it ispassed to the screens or the paper machine.

The efiect of this processis to produce a fiber which is slightlyalkaline in its interior and slightly acid .on its outer surface. Such afiber has special paper making properties that are of particular valuein the production of a strong andpliable paper.

By this process I have obtained certain distinct advanta es from thosenow being obtained'by met ods in. common-use. The advantages are asfollows: (1) The hydrating action in the Jordan is much more efficientand less power is used by the Jordan to produce the same produced bythis method of beating in the Jordan is stronger and more pliable; (3)there is no corrosion of the knives in the beating engine or Jordan; (4)sulphate of alumina is not in contact with the fibers long enough tomake them astringent, although it will react completely with the rosinsize within the time allowed.

I, therefore, claim as my invention:

1 A method of hydrating cellulose fibers,-

which consists in beater and dition.

2. A method of hydrating cellulose fibers, which consists in passingthem through a beating them in both Jordan while in an alkalineconresult; (2) the paper Jordan engine while in an alkaline condition.

3. A method of treating cellulose fibers for paper making, whichconsists in hydrating the fibers by in the presence fibers are made of asoluble alkali until the pliable by the penetration of the alkali, andthen neutralizing the alkali that is on the surface of the fibers and inthe solution surrounding the fibers, by means of sulphate of alumina.

4. A pliable paper product made from cellulose fibers, having theinterior of each fiber slightly alkaline and the surface of each fiberslightly acid.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

JUDSON A. DE GEW.

beating and jordaning them

